25 May 2017

Meet the 2017-2018 HBS Leadership Fellows

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The 2017-18 Leadership Fellows
Photo: Justin Saglio

The Leadership Fellows Program at Harvard Business School is based on University Professor Michael Porter’s vision of developing a network of HBS graduates with cross-sector experience who are committed to addressing societal issues throughout their careers. The Fellowship is a two-way commitment in which graduating students are offered once-in-a-lifetime opportunities to experience high-impact management positions in nonprofit and public sector organizations for one year at a competitive salary. At the same time, the hiring organizations leverage the experience, energy, and strategic and analytical skills of MBAs in roles that produce immediate results and build long-term capacity.

Since its inception in 2001, the Leadership Fellows Program has placed 190 Fellows at organizations such as the City of Boston Mayor’s Office, Harlem Children’s Zone, Mercy Corps, World Wildlife Fund, and the U.S. Department of Education.

“The HBS Leadership Fellows Program provides our newly-minted MBAs with an unparalleled opportunity to partner with senior leaders in the public and social sectors to tackle some of society’s toughest challenges,” notes Matt Segneri (MBA 2010), Director of the HBS Social Enterprise Initiative. Segneri spent his own Leadership Fellows year in the City of Boston Mayor’s Office and continued his career in social enterprise at Bloomberg Philanthropies before returning to HBS.

Whether Fellows stay on with their sponsoring organizations, move to another social enterprise, or enter the private sector, past participants agree that the Leadership Fellows Program is critical to their ongoing development as leaders who make a difference in the world.

"This is the opportunity I came to HBS to find," said Andrew Cone (MBA 2017), who will be working with the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City.

"It's a rare gift to be able to have such an impact this early in my career, and I'm looking forward to the challenge," said Verdell Walker, who will be working with Sesame Workshop.

The 2017-2018 HBS Leadership Fellows will be taking on issues in Boston and the broader US. They will be working in a wide array of fields, including arts and culture, education, government, health care, and international development. They are as follows:

Hrithik Bansal, BRAC USA

Smitha Boyd, Massachusetts Office of Information Technology

Ophelia Chua, American Ballet Theatre

Andrew Cone, Whitney Museum of American Art

Margo Cramer, City of Boston, Department of Neighborhood Development

Tian Feng, United Nations World Food Programme

Sherri Geng, Harlem Children's Zone

Steven Greene, City of Boston Mayor's Office

Pia Gugnani, Boston Children's Hospital

Ben Luxenberg, Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA)

Mark Margiotta, MassHealth

Katie Rae Mulvey, Detroit Economic Growth Corporation

Ishan Shrestha, MassHealth

Justin Smith, United Nations World Food Programme

Henry Tsai, City of San Jose, Office of Mayor

Verdell Walker, Sesame Workshop

Aaron Whittemore, MBTA

Hear from the Fellows in their own words about why they are excited about their upcoming opportunities.

Harvard Business School is grateful for the generosity of donors who have been vital to the HBS Leadership Fellows Program: James A. Atwood, Jr. (MBA 1984) Fellowship Fund, David J. Dunn Fund, Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation/Richard L. Menschel Endowment, Richard Lumpkin Dean’s Discretionary Fund, Margaret T. Morris Foundation Endowment, Michael E. Porter Leadership Fellowship, and John C. Whitehead Fund for Not-for-Profit Management.

About the Social Enterprise Initiative: The HBS Social Enterprise Initiative applies innovative business practices and managerial disciplines to drive sustained, high-impact social change. It is grounded in the mission of Harvard Business School and aims to educate, support, and inspire leaders across all sectors to tackle society’s toughest challenges and make a difference in the world.

About Harvard Business School

Founded in 1908 as part of Harvard University, Harvard Business School is located on a 40-acre campus in Boston. Its faculty of more than 250 offers full-time programs leading to the MBA and PhD degrees, as well as more than 175 Executive Education programs, and Harvard Business School Online, the School’s digital learning platform. For more than a century, faculty have drawn on their research, their experience in working with organizations worldwide, and their passion for teaching, to educate leaders who make a difference in the world. The School and its curriculum attract the boldest thinkers and the most collaborative learners who will go on to shape the practice of business and entrepreneurship around the globe.